textproduct: Quad Cities

KEY MESSAGES

- Tonight through Thursday night will feature a few rounds of showers and storms, with a boundary that moves into the area and stalls out. Overall, most will see an inch or less of rain, with locations along the boundary seeing upwards to 1.50".

- Friday into Saturday will feature quieter weather with high pressure passing through. Then, a stronger wave will bring showers/storms to the area Sunday into Monday.

UPDATE

Issued at 812 PM CDT Tue Apr 7 2026

Radar returns have gotten more robust as they've moved into eastern Iowa. 00z Sounding shows plenty of dry air below 850 mb with moisture above. Dry sub-cloud layer is allowing evaporative cooling of the atmosphere to occur around the showers.

Spotter report in Belle Plaine had snow pellets or snow grains mixing in with the rain. Relatively warm ground should prevent any accumulation overnight but a localized dusting cannot be ruled out.

Forecast has been updated to reflect the potential of snow or a rain/snow mix overnight.

SHORT TERM /THROUGH WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 243 PM CDT Tue Apr 7 2026

Precipitation currently on radar is struggling to make it to the surface across the area with mainly sprinkles falling south of a Ottumwa to Macomb line. The forcing associated with the this band of precipitation is forecast to slowly weaken into this evening as it lights northward. There are low chances tonight across east central Iowa and think that is any rain falls it would be as mainly sprinkles as the dry surface layer continues to sit across the area. The current gusty southeast winds will diminish late this afternoon but winds will be sustained at 10 to 15 MPH overnight. Low temperatures are the in the upper 30s north of Interstate 80 to the lower 40s south.

Another shortwave is forecast to move across the area on Wednesday with an attendant surface low and a warm and cold front. The area will sit it the warm sector for most of the day with warmest day of the week in the forecast. High temperatures will range from the upper 60s north of Highway 30 to the lower 70s south. Winds will increase across the area from west to east after midnight and really increase as winds turn to the south around sunrise on Wednesday. Winds will increase to 10 to 15 MPH with gusts gusts up to 25 MPH during the morning ahead of a cold front. Winds will increase ahead of the front with sustained speeds of 15 to 25 MPH and gusts up to 40 MPH during the afternoon. Global models show the front moving into far northwest parts of the CWA during the late afternoon and slowed POPs down to after 4 PM on Wednesday with a 30 to 60 percent chance 4 to 7 PM with the better chances overnight after 7 PM Wednesday. Thunder will be limited due to limited about of CAPE so showers with embedded thunderstorms are possible.

LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/

Issued at 243 PM CDT Tue Apr 7 2026

Little change to the overall forecast beyond Wednesday so made a few adjustments to the previous day.

Wednesday night and beyond will feature quite the active weather pattern, with near-daily chances for precipitation within our forecast area. This active pattern can be attributed to LLVL southerly flow pumping into the area from the Gulf, increasing moisture throughout, with upper level zonal flow guiding weak disturbances off of the Rockies and towards our area. With that, a stalled out boundary will result in a few rounds of showers/storms Thursday into Friday. As we head into the weekend, upper level flow becomes more southwesterly due to a deep trof over the western CONUS, setting the stage for stronger waves Sunday and beyond with a couple of stronger disturbances lifting across the area early next week.

Wednesday night into Friday, we will see zonal flow aloft guide weak disturbances through the area, with a tight low level baroclinic zone progged to set up near the area. This pattern would favor the potential for rounds of showers and embedded storms. While some uncertainty exists on the placement of the boundary, global models favor this setting up somewhere over our forecast area. The bulk of the impacts from this setup will be seen Thursday into Friday. Although, prior, a deep wave will pass north of the area Wednesday night, dragging a cold front through the region. This cold front will not only bring the first round of showers/storms to the area, but it will eventually stall over the area, which will be the aforementioned boundary that will produce further showers/storms Thursday through Friday. Overall, the severe threat through this timeframe is low due to weaker forcing and instability. Rather, this will be more-so a rainfall event, with embedded thunderstorms. WPC favors much of the area seeing between 0.50-1.00" of rain through the end of the week, with a focused corridor of 1.00-1.50" where that boundary sets up. While this may sound like a washout, there will be plenty of dry time, especially Friday. Warmest temperatures this week will be seen on Wednesday, with widespread temperatures near 70. Cooler air will move in behind the front on Thursday for most of the area, with areas north of the front seeing upper 50s to low 60s and then south of the front remaining near/above 70. Friday will be cooler throughout, as the boundary finally gets pushed south and weak high pressure moves in.

High pressure and associated ridge push east Saturday into Sunday, with upper level flow becoming more southwesterly. This would favor strong WAA into the region, especially on Sunday. Saturday will serve as the transitional day, which should keep us largely dry with temperatures in the 60s. Going into Sunday, we see a more potent wave eject off of the southern Rockies and track northeast into the Central Plains. Surface low will follow a similar track, with leading shortwaves bringing chances for precipitation Sunday into Monday. Without a baroclinic zone stalled over the area, we are not expecting a focused area of heavy precipitation at this time. Rather, scattered showers and storms will result, especially with increasing instability. Too soon to determine any risk for strong/severe storms, but this will be the wave to watch, as it will have the better forcing and instability associated with it. Temperatures Sunday will be quite mild, with most of the area in the low-mid 70s.

AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY/

Issued at 626 PM CDT Tue Apr 7 2026

Area radars show plenty of echoes moving east across Iowa but not much reaching the ground due to a very dry atmosphere. Through 06z/08 the potential is there for a brief rain shower; probability is lower than the 30% in the TAFs. After 06z/08 a low level jet will create LLWS around 1.5 kft AGL plus/minus 300 feet. The LLWS risk will end around 15z/08 as the inversion breaks and winds turn southerly and gust up to 40 knots after 18z/08.

DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

IA...None. IL...None. MO...None.